50 research outputs found
Couplings of N=1 chiral spinor multiplets
We derive the action for chiral spinor multiplets coupled to vector and
scalar multiplets. We give the component form of the action, which contains
gauge invariant mass terms for the antisymmetric tensors in the spinor
superfield and additional Green-Schwarz couplings to vector fields. We observe
that supersymmetry provides mass terms for the scalars in the spinor multiplet
which do not arise from eliminating an auxiliary field. We construct the dual
action by explicitly performing the duality transformations in superspace and
give its component form.Comment: 17 pages, v2 small change
Gaugino Condensation with S-Duality and Field-Theoretical Threshold Corrections
We study gaugino condensation in the presence of an intermediate mass scale
in the hidden sector. S-duality is imposed as an approximate symmetry of the
effective supergravity theory. Furthermore, we include in the K\"ahler
potential the renormalization of the gauge coupling and the one-loop threshold
corrections at the intermediate scale. It is shown that confinement is indeed
achieved. Furthermore, a new running behaviour of the dilaton arises which we
attribute to S-duality. We also discuss the effects of the intermediate scale,
and possible phenomenological implications of this model.Comment: 19 pages, LaTeX, 3 postscript figures include
Calabi-Yau Fourfolds with Flux and Supersymmetry Breaking
In Calabi-Yau fourfold compactifications of M-theory with flux, we
investigate the possibility of partial supersymmetry breaking in the
three-dimensional effective theory. To this end, we place the effective theory
in the framework of general N=2 gauged supergravities, in the special case
where only translational symmetries are gauged. This allows us to extract
supersymmetry-breaking conditions, and interpret them as conditions on the
4-form flux and Calabi-Yau geometry. For N=2 unbroken supersymmetry in three
dimensions we recover previously known results, and we find a new condition for
breaking supersymmetry from N=2 to N=1, i.e. from four to two supercharges. An
example of a Calabi-Yau hypersurface in a toric variety that satisfies this
condition is provided.Comment: 26 page
One-Loop Pauli-Villars Regularization of Supergravity I: Canonical Gauge Kinetic Energy
It is shown that the one-loop coefficients of on-shell operators of standard
supergravity with canonical gauge kinetic energy can be regulated by the
introduction of Pauli-Villars chiral and abelian gauge multiplets, subject to a
condition on the matter representations of the gauge group. Aspects of the
anomaly structure of these theories under global nonlinear symmetries and an
anomalous gauge symmetry are discussed.Comment: 46 pages, full postscript also available from
http://phyweb.lbl.gov/theorygroup/papers/preprints.html/41981.ps . Misprints
and errors in equations present in the original version have been correcte
One-loop Regularization of Supergravity II: The Dilaton and the Superfield Formulation
The on-shell regularization of the one-loop divergences of supergravity
theories is generalized to include a dilaton of the type occurring in effective
field theories derived from superstring theory, and the superfield structure of
the one-loop corrections is given. Field theory anomalies and quantum
contributions to soft supersymmetry breaking are discussed. The latter are
sensitive to the precise choice of couplings that generate Pauli-Villars
masses, which in turn reflect the details of the underlying theory above the
scale of the effective cut-off. With a view to the implementation the
Green-Schwarz and other mechanisms for canceling field theory anomalies under a
U(1) gauge transformation and under the T-duality group of modular
transformations, we show that the K\"ahler potential renormalization for the
untwisted sector of orbifold compactification can be made invariant under these
groups.Comment: 46 pages, full postscript also available from
http://phyweb.lbl.gov/theorygroup/papers/43259.p
Phase I dose escalation study of telatinib (BAY 57-9352) in patients with advanced solid tumours
Telatinib (BAY 57-9352) is an orally available, small-molecule inhibitor of vascular endothelial growth factor receptors 2 and 3 (VEGFR-2/-3) and platelet-derived growth factor receptor β tyrosine kinases. In this multicentre phase I dose escalation study, 71 patients with refractory solid tumours were enroled into 14 days on/7 days off (noncontinuous dosing) or continuous dosing groups to receive telatinib two times daily (BID). Hypertension (23%) and diarrhoea (7%) were the most frequent study drug-related adverse events of CTC grade 3. The maximum-tolerated dose was not reached up to a dose of 1500 mg BID continuous dosing. Telatinib was rapidly absorbed with median tmax of 3 hours or less. Geometric mean Cmax and AUC0−12 increased in a less than dose-proportional manner and plateaued in the 900–1500 mg BID dose range. Two renal cell carcinoma patients reached a partial response. Tumour blood flow measured by contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging and sVEGFR-2 plasma levels decreased with increasing AUC0−12 of telatinib. Telatinib is safe and well tolerated up to a dose of 1500 mg BID continuous dosing. Based on pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic criteria, 900 mg telatinib BID continuously administered was selected as the recommended phase II dose
Potential biological role of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) in male gametes
Maintaining the integrity of sperm DNA is vital to reproduction and male fertility. Sperm contain a number of molecules and pathways for the repair of base excision, base mismatches and DNA strand breaks. The presence of Poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), a DNA repair enzyme, and its homologues has recently been shown in male germ cells, specifically during stage VII of spermatogenesis. High PARP expression has been reported in mature spermatozoa and in proven fertile men. Whenever there are strand breaks in sperm DNA due to oxidative stress, chromatin remodeling or cell death, PARP is activated. However, the cleavage of PARP by caspase-3 inactivates it and inhibits PARP's DNA-repairing abilities. Therefore, cleaved PARP (cPARP) may be considered a marker of apoptosis. The presence of higher levels of cPARP in sperm of infertile men adds a new proof for the correlation between apoptosis and male infertility. This review describes the possible biological significance of PARP in mammalian cells with the focus on male reproduction. The review elaborates on the role played by PARP during spermatogenesis, sperm maturation in ejaculated spermatozoa and the potential role of PARP as new marker of sperm damage. PARP could provide new strategies to preserve fertility in cancer patients subjected to genotoxic stresses and may be a key to better male reproductive health